15 Sep Salvation and Forgiveness
Read: Romans 1:21-25
Last Sunday Pastor Ken preached a message from Romans 1:18-20 on the wrath of God revealed against the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. This Sunday he will preach from Romans 1:21-24 on the rebellion of man through the foolishness of idolatry. Also, we will be observing the Lord’s Supper together! As you prepare your heart for our corporate gathering, let these words from Milton Vincent encourage you and remind you of our glorious salvation and forgiveness in Jesus Christ.
Heart Preparation
The Glory of God
God is the most supremely worthy Object of admiration, honor, and delight in all of the universe; And He has created me with the intention that I might glorify Him by finding my soul’s delight in Him and by living in joyful obedience to Him in all of my ways.
My Sin Against God
Yet I could not have failed this great God more miserably than I have. Instead of giving thanks to Him and humbly submitting to His rule over my life, I have rebelled against Him and have actually sought to exalt myself above Him. Going my own way and living according to my own wisdom, I have broken countless times either the letter or the spirit of every one of God’s Ten Commandments. Thinking myself to be wise, I have shown myself to be a fool; and because of my arrogance, God has every right to damn me to the everlasting experience of His terrifying wrath in the Lake of Fire. So as for myself, apart from Christ I am bound by the guilt of my sins and also bound by the power of sin, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures. Apart from Christ, I am also utterly deserving of and destined for eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire, completely unable to save myself or even to make one iota of a contribution to my own salvation.
God’s Work on My Behalf
However, what I could not do, God did – and in doing it, He did it all, sending His own Son into the world to die on the cross for my sins, thereby showing me unfathomable love. God loved me so much that He was willing to suffer the loss of His Son, and even more amazingly, He was willing to allow His Son to suffer the loss of Him at the cross. Jesus loved me so much that He was willing to lay down His life for me. No one could ever love me more or better than Jesus. On the third day after Jesus’ death, God raised Him from the dead, thereby announcing that His death was completely sufficient to atone for every sin that I have or will commit throughout my lifetime. God then exalted Christ to His own right hand, where Christ now reigns from on high, granting salvation and forgiveness to all who call on Him by faith.
Excerpt from A Gospel Primer for Christians, by Milton Vincent
Song List for Sunday
- Not to Us, by Chris Tomlin
- I Will Glory in My Redeemer, by Sovereign Grace Music
- The Depths of Your Love, by North Wake Music
- In Christ Alone, by Keith and Kristyn Getty